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Itachi Uchiha
| relatives = Sasuke Uchiha (brother) | aux2 = Rogue ninja | aux2 name = Ninja rank | aux3 = Kisame Hoshigaki | aux3 name = Akatsuki partner }} is a fictional character in the Naruto manga and anime series created by Masashi Kishimoto. Itachi is the older brother of Sasuke Uchiha and is responsible for killing all the members of their clan, sparing only Sasuke. Though treated as an antagonist for much of the series, it is later revealed that Itachi slaughtered his clan in order to prevent a coup d'état which would result in a war, and that he had been acting in both Konoha's and Sasuke's best interests for the entire series. Itachi has been featured in film, has appeared once in an original video animation of Naruto, and is a playable character in most of the video games from the series. Itachi's character had been popular with readers of the manga, and was positively received by critics. His appearance as an antagonist has been praised by several writers, although some considered his initial appearance to be unsurprising. The gradual revelations of his past and its impact on the story received positive reception, and his fights were noted to be "one of the best" in the series. Numerous types of merchandise have been released in Itachi's likeness, including keychains, plush dolls and figurines. Appearances In Naruto Itachi is a member of the Uchiha Clan from the village of Konohagakure and the elder brother of Sasuke Uchiha. He grew up as the child prodigy of the Uchiha clan, establishing milestones for Sasuke and future Uchiha to live up to. His early childhood was marred by war, the violence of which caused him to seek peace at any cost. Learning that his clan was planning a coup d'état to take control of Konoha, after being unjustly accused of attacking the village with the Nine Tails, Itachi feared a war would break out, and he became a double agent to provide Konoha with intelligence on his clan's actions. Over time, Itachi began to distance himself from his clan, as some believed he murdered his best friend Shisui Uchiha to gain a Mangekyo Sharingan. In reality, as he possesses the ability to subliminally manipulate others, Shisui is mortally wounded by Danzo, losing an eye, and entrusts Itachi with his remaining eye to achieve peace. Eventually, in return for Danzo's promise to spare his younger brother, Itachi slaughters his entire clan, with the exception of Sasuke. After creating a misperception that he murdered their family in cold blood to give Sasuke the mindset to become strong enough to kill him once he is old enough, Itachi leaves the village with Konoha's Third Hokage Hiruzen Sarutobi promising to do what he can to look after Sasuke. Itachi keeps Danzo from breaking his word by threatening to reveal the truth of the incident if he ever harms Sasuke. Soon afterwards, intent on protecting his village from the shadows, Itachi joins the Akatsuki to ensure they do not endanger Konoha. Itachi becomes good friends with his partner Kisame Hoshigaki, who expresses concern for Itachi's wellbeing. Beginning to suffer blindness due to overuse of the Mangekyo Sharingan, Itachi begins to suffer an illness, which he tries to keep at bay long enough for Sasuke to kill him. It is at this time that Itachi meets Orochimaru and plays a role in the man's defection when he defends himself from Orochimaru's attempt to take his body. Itachi debuts in Part I after the Hiruzen's death when he and Kisame infiltrate Konoha to hunt down Naruto Uzumaki, with an ulterior motive to see that Danzo and the other Elders of Konoha know that he is still alive to remind them not to hurt or kill Sasuke. After engaging with Kakashi and some of Konoha's forces, revealing Akatsuki's goal to gather the Jinchuriki of the nine tailed beasts, Itachi learns that Naruto is under the protection of Jiraiya and sets up a trap to lure the experienced ninja away to grab the boy. However, as Jiraiya comes to Naruto's aid, Itachi finds himself facing Sasuke and directs his brother back on the path of getting stronger by defeating him before he and Kisame fall back. In Part II, he has a clone of himself created to hold off Naruto and the rest of his team while he and the others seal Shukaku the One Tail. Itachi remains on the sidelines until learning that Sasuke has finally severed his ties to Orochimaru, having absorbed him and now becoming strong enough to settle matters. Prior to his fight with Sasuke, Itachi meets with Naruto and, after questioning his intentions to save Sasuke, ensures the youth's safety with a crow with Shisui Uchiha's Sharingan as a countermeasure against Sasuke if he gains his Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan and attempts to attack Konoha. Sasuke ultimately tracks him down and they engage in their final battle, during the course of which he uses his Mangekyo Sharingan to push Sasuke to his limits. In doing so, Orochimaru is drawn out from Sasuke's body, and Itachi seals him away with his Susanoo before finally dying from his disease. As his final act, Itachi implants his Amaterasu technique within Sasuke, meant as a protective measure that will kill Tobi in case he ever attacks Sasuke. Unfortunately, Tobi reveals the truth of Itachi's actions to Sasuke as he resolves to destroy the village, eventually having his brother's Mangekyo Sharingan implanted on him. Itachi reappears later during the Fourth Great Ninja War, brought by Kabuto Yakushi using the Reanimation Jutsu, a forbidden summoning jutsu that brings the dead back as immortal corpses, to fight on Tobi's side. Paired with Nagato and forced to fight Naruto and Killer Bee against his will, Itachi learns of his brother's intentions and summons the crow he gave Naruto to regain his free will. After sealing Nagato, Itachi heads out to stop Kabuto and encounters Sasuke as they join forces to battle him, with his younger brother wanting to know the truth once it is over. After a long battle, Itachi is pushed to use Izanami to trap Kabuto in an eternal time-loop within his mind to have him break his jutsu. His soul beginning to fade, Itachi uses his Sharingan to project his memories to Sasuke, to reveal the full story of the events leading to the Uchiha Clan Massacre, while telling his brother that he does not have to forgive him and that he will always love him, no matter what choice he makes from then on. In other media Itachi is present in the sixth Naruto: Shippuden movie, Road to Ninja, where he leads an alternate-universe Akatsuki to help Naruto. He has a brief cameo in one of the original video animations, and is a playable character in nearly all ''Naruto'' video games, including the ''Clash of Ninja'' series and the ''Ultimate Ninja'' series. In some games, he utilizes variations of his techniques not seen in the anime or manga. Several merchandise items based on Itachi have been released, including key chains, plush dolls, and figurines. Reception Itachi has ranked high in the Weekly Shonen Jump popularity polls for the series, continuously placing in the top 10. He was ranked in fifth position in the polls of 2011, his highest ranking to date. The character received generally positive reviews from several publications for manga, anime, video games, and other related media. IGN reader Jason Van Horn characterized Itachi as "badass" and jokingly mentioned that he is a character to be afraid of since, in his first fight in the series, he does not make any remarkable move. He found that "there is just something about the cold and numb Itachi," that makes the viewer "want to breakout in chills". IGN's Charles White liked the episode where the relationship between young Sasuke and Itachi is revealed, and hoped to see more of their past to resolve the mystery of Itachi's character commenting that learning about their "past has been intriguing". In the Shelf Life section from Anime News Network (ANN) Bamboo Dong comments that Itachi is one of their favorite characters from the series, noting his background and his introduction as the best parts of the series. Activeanime writer Davey C. Jones celebrated Itachi's fights as the best ones in the series, noting his abilities to be as amazing as a "sci-fi ninja". Holly Ellingwood from the same website agrees, citing his fight against Kakashi Hatake as one "few will be able to forget". The reviewer also praised Itachi's attitude, commenting that he "is as cold and as ruthless as any villain yet". In a review of Volume 16 of the manga, Deb Aoki from About.com listed Itachi's introduction in the series as one of the cons from the volume. She praised his first fight in the series as very entertaining, meant to "whet readers' appetites" for future fights between Konoha ninja and the Akatsuki". James Musgrove commented that Itachi and his partner Kisame "make a dramatic and well-timed entrance into the story". However, Jason Van Horn criticised the first battle between Itachi and Sasuke, as "good" but not "as epic as it should've been". His last fight with Sasuke before dying was considered "epic" by Casey Brienza from ANN. She found to be "a battle of minds" since, even after Itachi's death, Sasuke changes his mind about him when he learns about his past. She also anticipated the impact of Itachi's past revelations on the future storyline of Naruto. References Category:Naruto characters Category:Characters Category:Male